Final Fantasy VII: Eve of Cataclysm
by Charcoal Weapon
Summary: One year after Dirge of Cerberus. Summary inside. CloTi, will contain lemon. Kiddies stay away!
1. Prologue: Premonition

AN: I do not own Final Fantasy VII or it's characters, they belong to SquareEnix. However, there are some custom characters that DO belong to me.

**WARNING: This Fanfic is rated M for a reason! Very graphic fighting and sex scenes! If you are under 18 years of age, I'm warning you against reading this fic! If you choose to do so anyways, that's your choice, and no fault of mine! I warned you!**

**Summary: **Cloud and Tifa's relationship has grown since Advent Children and Dirge of Cerberus, but Cloud has been having nightmares that are testing it. Meanwhile, two companies struggle for dominance over the worlds energy supply. Someone wants Cloud dead, Demons arise from the shadows, and things are not always as they seem. Not to mention the possibility of a new danger that could threaten the very Planet. Sounds like another day in the life of Cloud Strife, but can even he stop this, or survive it?

**P****ROLOGUE**

**P****REMONITION**

_Time, is going so much faster than I_

_I'm starting to regret not spending all of it with you_

_Now I'm wondering why I kept this bottled inside_

_So I'm starting to regret not telling all of it to you_

_So, if I haven't yet, I've gotta let you know_

Sparks flew as blades connected. The man was thrown backward by the force of his opponent, landing hard on the rubble-strewn street. His companion jumped at their opponent from behind. Fast as a cat, the blonde warrior spun, parrying the pipe and using his attackers' momentum to slam his elbow into the man's temple. Falling to the ground, the would-be-attacker gave a soft grunt before hitting ground. Nothing moved; the wind had stilled. A groan filled this silence.

Shaking his head, Cloud Strife picked his way across the broken and littered floor to the first man. He found him trying to get to his feet, painfully slow. _At least he's alive._ Cloud hated killing these sorts – scavengers, desperate in desperate times. It wasn't their fault they had fallen on hard times. Due to the increasingly hostile dispute between the two leading companies of energy production, money had become fragile and food scarce. It came down to coal and a new material found near the Forgotten Capital called Black Ore. Black Ore needed to be extracted in large facilities called depots. They may be called depots, but they reminded Cloud of the Shinra Reactors, which was as good a reason for him not supporting them as the fact that one of his best friends, Barret Wallace, was the President of the competing company.

Watching the injured man struggling on the ground, Cloud wished there was someway to end the dispute quickly and without further collateral damage. He hated killing men like this, but it had happened.

"Stay still; you'll only injure yourself further." Cloud bent down, left hand outstretched to aide the poor wretch. If he had been less sympathetic, he would have seen the dagger long before it slashed his wrist. Clenching his teeth, Cloud pulled back, First Tsuguri ready.

But the man stayed where he was. _I must have just startled him._ A sudden searing in his wrist – much too painful for a simple cut to account for – forced him to drop his sword, clutching his left arm in pain. It wasn't until then that he noticed the white halo surrounding the scar. Looking closer, he saw that the halo was slowly spreading outward, away from the cut. Another thing that caught his attention was the border of the halo – small tentacles squirmed and flailed as the hallo moved. It was clear to him that this halo with its mane of tentacles, was _inside_ his skin.

Breath heaving, he looked back to his attacker. A smile split his face in two, his body suddenly bloated. "The enemy of my enemy," he spoke in a raspy, baritone voice. Very inhuman. Standing on his feet – seeming to have no trouble now – he pointed the dagger at Cloud, dripping with his blood. "Is my enemies' enemy, nothing more, nothing less!" The last was a high-pitched scream as his body bulged, inflating like a balloon. A whirring sound filled Clouds ears as the man – the thing – continued to grow. His eyes and mouth were covered by the bulging cheeks and forehead. It was like watching someone being filled with water to the point of exploding.

The ever-growing mass then stopped growing. It stood still, twenty stories high, doing nothing. Then, all at once, the thing began deflating. Faster then the growth, the shrinking was over in a matter of seconds. When it became once again the size of a man, a blast of hot air nearly knocked Cloud off his feet. Cover his face from the heat.

Then it was over. The whirring noise, the hot air, it all stopped. What remained was a silence so complete, he could hear the oxygen moving through his lungs – or so it seemed. He was still breathing hard, sweat covering him like a second skin.

Opening his eyes, he stumbled over to where the man, or whatever it was, had been. He was not sure what he saw exactly. It looked like three twigs bound together by thread, two of the twigs crossing the third horizontally. One horizontal twig was near the top of the third, leaving an inch sticking up; the other horizontal twig was at the very bottom, letting nothing of the third beyond it.

He wished the sweating would stop; he needed to brush his un-injured hand across his eyes so he could see clearly, only to need to brush his eyes again as the sweat muddled his sight.

Was it a fever? No. His temperature felt normal. His breathing was anything but. The pain in his wrist was growing. _What is wrong with me?_ Then he saw it. The formation of the twigs looked like…a man. A human, at any rate. A twig-man? His breath caught in his lungs, his body clenching as the pain in his arm numbed everything else, even thought. Almost unconsciously, he looked back down at the scar and its white halo.

_What in Gaia?_ The halo had taken another shape. The glow around the shape seemed to fade in and out, like a flickering flame. Then the glow grew as bright as sunlight, nearly blinding Cloud. But he did not turn away, did not close his eyes. He didn't blink. The glow vanished and left the shape black on his skin, like a tattoo. Turning his hand so that the cut was closest to him, he saw what the image was.

A meteor. It was pointed at his cut like…that was its destination. _Gaia, not again!_

*******

Opening his eyes, he gasped. Throwing the covers off him, he sat up. The cold of the night made goose bumps spread across his exposed body. His body was caked in cold sweat, his hair matted to his head. Turning, he dropped his legs over the side of the bed and placed his face in his hands, trying to calm down.

"Cloud?" a sleep-muffled voice called out behind him. Looking back, he saw he had pushed the covers down too far, as they exposed the woman's very generous chest. Fixing the blanket so she was properly covered, he stood up and walked to the door to the bathroom.

"Cloud?" her voice called out again, less muffled than before as she began to wake. "What's the matter?"

Stopping at the door, he steadied himself, not looking back at her as he answered. "Nothing, Tifa, just a nightmare, that's all. Go back to sleep, I'll be out soon."

She wasn't fooled. "The same one?" He couldn't help wincing. "Cloud, you can't keep it bottle up inside. You can't –"

"It's just a nightmare, a dream!" He couldn't keep the bitterness from his voice. "Dream or nightmare, that's all it is, Teef." Opening the bathroom door, he entered.

"Cloud, I just –"

He slammed the door shut, pressing his back against it, taking a few deep breaths. His knees buckled under him, and he slid down the door. Feeling the emotion rising, he pushed at it. But tears welled up in his eyes. He couldn't stop it. Bringing his knees to his chest, he wrapped his arms around them. As the tears began falling, he hid his face behind his knees.

Sniffing, he brought his head back up, glaring at his reflection in the mirror. _Why are you so weak? _He silently asked his mirror image. Moving his knees away, he pounded his fists against his chest, trying to drive the tears away with pain. Breath heaving, he stopped, blinking the remaining tears away. Giving himself a few slaps in the face, he shook his head to clear it.

Standing up, he walked into the shower stall, closing the glass-panel door behind him.

*******

Tifa Lockheart tried to ignore the sounds coming from the other side of the door. Cloud was crying and she wasn't there to cry with him. Gaia knew she wanted to. The door banged against its framing. Then she heard the shower turn on. Burying her face in her pillow, she began to cry. _Oh, Cloud, why won't you let me in? Why do you want to be alone?_

They had gotten together shortly after Geostigma had been cleansed. Cloud had told her that he had needed time. He had had strong feelings for Aeris, and he had blamed himself when she died. But he needed to let her go. Tifa couldn't help feeling like the rebound, but her feelings for him far outweighed anything else.

It had been a gradual process, but they had been living with each other for nine months by the time they took on Deepground, now a year past. Two months after defeating Omega Weapon, Cloud had started having nightmares. He had brushed them off, and she had thought nothing of them at first. But when they continued, Cloud's stoicism began to fade, and her concern grew.

The water stopped and she heard him moving around. He came out and she could tell he thought she was asleep and didn't want to wake her. She wanted to confront him, but couldn't bring herself to do it. She heard him rummaging around, putting on his clothes. Then the door opened and closed softly. She listened to his footsteps going down the stairs into the bar below. Then the bell hooked up to the entrance jangled. She heard a motor start up and knew he had mounted his motor-bike, Fenrir. Tires squealed as he drove off.

Getting out of the bed, she wrapped herself in a robe and walked into the bathroom, fearing what she'd find. There was a circular crack in one of the mirrors, as if he had punched it. Then she found a white pill in the sink. Thinking the worse, she searched around, looking for a prescription bottle. She found it in the garbage, empty. When she read the bottle, she dropped the bottle and ran, throwing herself onto the bed. Tears began anew as she cried herself back to sleep.

Onyx Weapon: My first attempt, so try to go easy. Read and Review, please. Constructive criticism appreciated.

Lyrics are to the song "Never Gonna Be Alone" by Nickelback, Dark Horse.


	2. Chapter I: Animal

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Final Fantasy VII or it's characters, they belong to SquareEnix. However, there are some custom characters that DO belong to me.

Also, I just want to make it clear that I'm making the laws of physics a bit more evident than in Advent Children.

**WARNING: This Fanfic is rated M for a reason! Very graphic fighting and sex scenes! If you are under 18 years of age, I'm warning you against reading this fic! If you choose to do so anyways, that's your choice, and no fault of mine! I warned you!**

* * *

_You're never gonna be alone_

_From this moment on_

_If you ever feel like letting go_

_I won't let you fall_

_You're never gonna be alone_

_I'll hold you till the hurt is gone_

* * *

**C****HAPTER**** I**

**A****NIMAL**

The pain medication was necessary, he told himself. But he knew he had started taking more than the prescription stated. It had become harder and harder not to. Wincing, he glanced at his right knuckle. The blood had not stopped. There were probably small shards of the mirror buried in the scar. He would have to take care of that, but not now.

The wind had an icy bite; a reminder that winter was not yet passed. He did not know where he was going. He did not care. He was running away from the nightmare, from the memory of it. It was futile. _Still,_ Cloud thought, _if I can go fast enough, I may succeed._ He hit the throttle, his face going numb from the speed with which he raced into the icy morning air. Fenrir began to shake, the wind resistance beginning to prove too much. Cloud pushed it faster. He had been riding for hours and had lost track of time. It was probably near seven.

The concrete wall separating the traffic going opposite directions exploded. Swerving, he slowed to controllable speeds and looked back at the hole in the wall. A vehicle burst through and turned toward him.

He heard it before the helicopter appeared above and to the left. He saw armored and masked men with guns. A few leaned out, pointing their weapons. Gunfire erupted and bullets rained down at him. Most were far of their mark, but some got close enough to get Cloud nervous.

The vehicle behind him, an armored van, was gaining. A man popped out of the passenger window and began firing his gun. A bullet grazed Cloud's shoulder. Swerving, he entered a ramp to take him to the high roads. Then he recognized the area he was in. Buildings lay in ruins. Streets were torn up and strewn with rubble. He was entering the remains of Midgar.

He saw a break in the road ahead, but it didn't pose too much of a threat. Readying himself, he sped up his approach. Timing it right, he jumped Fenrir over the hole, entering the high roads still in the air. He saw the semi coming at him from the right, but there was nothing he could do. The left headlight shattered as it slammed into the back of Fenrir, still in mid-air. The force broke apart the entire rear of the bike, the rear wheel was sent flying. The rest of the bike, with Cloud still attached, went spinning like a top toward the broken edge of the road.

Cloud was thrown of Fenrir as the bike hit the ground, coming apart on contact. Cloud slammed into the asphalt, tumbling closer and closer to the edge that led to a very long fall. Sliding off the edge, he shot his hand out, reflexively to grab anything stable. The slightly protruding piece of road his hand grasped onto broke off immediately as gravity forced his body down. He was falling alongside a cracked support beam that could have saved his life. But he was still falling outward, toward a collapsed building whose only standing wall seemed fragile enough to crumble if he so much as breathed on it.

Still, he could not control the momentum of his fall, and he braced himself as his body crashed into the wall, the back of his head making a solid _thump _against the brick. Dust and debris followed his continued decent. Darkness closed around the edges of his vision. He felt like he was float upward, not falling down.

Of a sudden, his body hit a flat piece of rubble that was propped diagonally against the wall of the building. Rolling and sliding down it, he was like a rag-doll going down a park slide. The actual ground met him unconscious and covered in dust, debris, and his own blood. His clothes were torn and beaten. His back, arms, and legs patched in black bruises. Still and broken, he lay waiting for death.

*******

Faec was a man of opportunity and action. He never did anything for free, and he never failed at a job. He was proud of that record, a record that could have just been destroyed by the bumbling idiot. Iendo, the large brute who had driven the semi, was complaining quite loudly.

"But, boss, you told me to get there fast to block him from the high roads. Besides, what difference does it make if he's dead or alive?"

_The imbecile!_ "The difference," He turned around, grabbing the big oaf by the collar of his shirt and slamming him up against the side of the semi. "Is that if he's dead, we don't get paid!" Slapping his face, Faec turned away. He had no doubt that Iendo could kill him by giving him a pat on the back, but he was smart enough to know that without Faec, he wouldn't get paid. Money was like candy to these chumps, wave a little in their face and they'd do anything for more.

Faec wasn't like that. He always evaluated the risks. If they weren't acceptable, he didn't do it for any amount of money. That's why he was leading this operation. He was the only one here with a brain past the size of a walnut!

"Well, what are ya all waitin' for? Get down there and pick 'im up! And if he's dead," He turned back to Iendo. "You'll be dead."

Iendo grunted, walking away.

_Gaia, where's all the good help gone these days?_

*******

A sound woke Cloud from the depths of unconsciousness. He almost passed out from the pain that shot through him like a jolt of electricity. Forcing himself onto his side, he vomited. Every breath sent another jolt of agony through his body. How he was still alive, he did not know.

The sound jerked his head up. It was a high-pitched sound that reminded him of…something. The air around him was full of fog. A cloud had fallen to the earth. It sounded again, the high-pitched…something. Whatever was making it was not far. Then he saw a shape in the fog. It was closing in on him. Sudden panic enveloped him. He could hardly breathe, let alone move; if it was hostile, how could he hope to defend himself?

The shape emerged into a grey wolf. The wolf watched him with yellow, un-blinking eyes. It sat down, and the sound rose again. Was it…it was whimpering. The wolf stood up, hair rising, it began to growl. It stared beyond him into the fog.

Coughing, Cloud struggled to sit up. "What…what is it…boy?" The wolf calmed down as it looked back to him, a knowing light in its eye. Then it turned and began to run back the way it came, stopping to look back at him, waiting. Grimacing in pain, he finally succeeded in propping himself up against a broken pillar beside him. "Want me to follow you…huh? Well…that may be…a problem." The wolf shook its head. Cloud began to laugh. "Yeah, yeah…ow…well, I did just fall fifty stories, you know." _What's wrong with me? I'm just talking to myself._

Inch by painful inch, Cloud pulled himself to his feet. His right arm wasn't cooperating with him; it must have dislocated itself in the landing. He braced himself as he forced his arm back into its socket. His teeth clamped down and he had to spit up blood from a cut on his tongue. _Well, this situation just keeps getting better, doesn't it?_

Taking some deep breaths to ready himself, he took a step toward the wolf. The second wasn't any easier, but it got the sub-conscious action started. The wolf ran off as he neared it, disappearing into the fog. _Glad I know I can count on you._

He continued in the direction the wolf had vanished. Occasionally he saw it's tail, or heard its padded feet in the distance. When the wolf reappeared, standing atop a mound of rubble, he was surprised at how long it had taken him to go such a short distance. He couldn't have gone more than a hundred yards. The wolf continued to climb, and once again was enveloped in that white cloak of mist.

"Let's not let things get easier, now." Cloud whispered as he began to climb. The rocks were rough and he scrapped his hands and legs more than he cared to count. _I'll be damn lucky if I have any skin left after this._ He had to take a break at every chance available. He finally tore a piece of his pant-leg off and wrapped his shredded right hands with it. The wrappings weren't anything special, but it would keep the dirt out; it would do until he reached a hospital.

When he found the wolf again, he was surprised as it disappeared into what seemed a cave. _How the hell did a cave get formed here in this rubble?_ Entering, it became clear that it was man-made. Someone had come to this place and taken out chunks of rocks to make a large cavern underneath the rubble. _Someone had too much time on their hands._ Light shown through holes in the ceiling, revealing the ground in large circular pools; some far apart, some overlapping each other. Much of the cavern was still cast in shadow.

The wolf stood in a pool of light about a yard away. Then it turned and was swallowed up by a black hole in the shadow. _So dark as to stand out in shadow; must be a cave._ He had followed the wolf this far, he might as well follow it the rest of the way. Wishing he had his sword, he plunged into darkness to deep, he could see nothing. Not a damn thing.

*******

Faec pointed to the bloody smears on the rocks above. "He's climbin', so are we. Get goin'!" Every handhold needed to be tested before used, every foothold made anew. Faec was glad for the leather gloves he now wore, judging by the blood left by the target, the rocks weren't very forgiving.

"Boss, I found something!" one of his men shouted from above.

"Hold on, I'm comin'. Don't do nothin' 'til I get there!"

When he reached his man, Ato, he saw what the man had found. "I think it's a cave, boss."

"Of course it's a cave! Caves are found everyday in the rubble of destroyed and abandoned cities!" He slapped the man upside the head. "Get back to climbin', idiot!"

Rubbing the back of his head, Ato pleaded, "But boss, there's blood down there."

Faec paused. Looking down at the entrance to the hole, he saw the spots of blood. Looking upward, he couldn't find any blood on the rocks. "Well, then what're ya waitn' for? Get down there! Do I have to do everything around here?"

Ato scrambled down the rocks to the opening. The others followed suit, Iendo taking up the rear. _Who the hell would make a cave in rubble?_ One thing was for sure, he was going to demand extra when he met up with his employer. Or at least, the man in charge of the funding. He had not actually met with his employer, not that he needed to. In this profession, it was better to know as little as possible.

Following after his men, Faec gasped as he saw the vastness of the cavern. _This is going to take some time!_ Faec was not a man of patience. "Spread out, find 'im, and bring 'im to me! Now!" Everyone fanned out as Faec sat down on a rock near the entrance, handgun loaded and ready.

*******

Roreq searched half-heartedly. He was beginning to think the job was more trouble than the prize was worth. He began only wanting to find this guy so he could personally put a bullet in his head. A low growl alerted him as a wolf appeared from the shadows. Gun ready, he turned on his communicator. "Hey boss, I found a wolf!"

The answer came back muddled from the distance and the echo effect of the cavern, still Roreq understood enough of it. "Then kill it, dammit!"

"Yes sir," Roreq said, turning the device off. "Say bye-bye, puppy." He lifted his gun and aimed.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." The voice was deep and raspy. Startled, Roreq turned, aiming his gun at the newcomer. He only got a glimpse of yellow before he was knocked over by something from behind. The wolf! Teeth buried into his shoulder as he struggled, yelling out for help. He did not see his gun get picked up, so focused he was on the wolf.

*******

Faec smiled to himself at the sound of the gunshot. It would alert the target, but it would scare him more, and the fearful made mistakes. The smile faded as thoughts returned to his employer. Now that he thought about it, he knew nothing of the man, if man it was. That was not normal. It was unnerving. Why did his employer want this man? What was their connection? Faec shook his head. Dangerous questions. It was safer this way. Besides, he could always ask the target when they caught him.

Another gunshot rang through the cavern. A sense came over him. Something was not right. "Roreq, another wolf?" Silence. "Roreq?" Silence. _Damn it!_ "Everyone sound off in code!"

Six voices buzzed autonomously, using their code names.

"Anyone else?" Faec asked into the communicator. No answer. "Damn it! Roreq and Secres are dead!" Faec jumped off his seat and ordered everyone to the entrance. When they arrived, he told them the news.

"Are you sure, boss?" Boldger asked.

"No, you idiot, I'm sure they just didn't answer because they're playin' Hide 'n Seek! Idiots!" He was surrounded by them. Looking around he cursed. _Literally!_ "Iendo and Jesant, stay here with me, you other four, split into two teams, and find that bastard!"

*******

He was no longer Cloud Strife, Hero of Edge. He had become something else. He didn't understand how or when, but he didn't fight it either. He was now Cloud the Animal. After killing the second man, he had taken his sword. It was a normal short sword, but it would do.

He moved through the shadows like a wraith. The shadows held no dangers to him, only a cloak to hide him from his enemies. Two men appeared, alert and ready – or so they thought. Cloud aimed and fired his last bullet, taking the guy farthest away in the head. The other man fell to his knee, aiming into the darkness.

Cloud rushed foreword, jumping off the wall, he hit the other wall, kicking off. He was zigzagging in mid-air from wall to wall. Cloud could see in the darkness, but sound was the only sense the other could use, and sound was not an ally in this echo-chamber of a cavern. He waved his gun back and forth, trying to spot anything. A flash of metal was his only warning as the sword took off his head.

Cloud hit the ground running. The Animal was hungry for more.

Four.

He turned a corner and almost ran directly into two more men, one with a sword, the other with an automatic machine gun. Cloud the Animal continued his course, sliding his blade through the chest of the man with the gun. Spinning, unsheathing his sword from the corpse, Cloud swung the blade at the remaining man. Sparks illuminated their faces as sword met sword. The man was good, probably as good as Cloud. Probably was not enough apparently, as Clouds blade opened up his throat.

Cloud the Animal was off running before the second corpse hit the ground.

Six.

*******

The sounds of battle were everywhere, due to the echo of the cavern. They could not discern from which direction the sounds were coming from. Faec was sweating with fear. He had never been in a situation like this. When silence took up again, Faec wet his lips and called out, "S-sound off in c-code, everyone." Silence. _Dammit, dammit, dammit, dammit! Who is this guy? Dammit!_

Jesnat looked at Faec, knowing what he was thinking. "What now, boss?"

"W-we…ahem, we wait for…for him t-t-to c-come to us. Y-yes, that's it." He was now visibly trembling. _I'm going to die, I know it!_

"Very well," Jesnat looked away, "We wait."

They didn't have to wait for long. A figure appeared, walking calmly towards them. Faec could not make out the details, due to the darkness in which the man strode, but he saw enough to know it was not one of his men. Then he entered a pool of light, and Faec gasped in surprise and disgust. The target, for that was who he was, looked as if he had been thrown down a rocky hill – which may not have been far from the truth. His clothes were in shreds, his body covered in blood and grime. His skin was cut open in various places, mostly along the arms. _And he's alive?_

Jesnat saw the danger his boss was in, just by the target being in the vicinity. It wasn't that he cared about Faec, but he did care about money, and Faec was the only one who knew where to find the buyer and get the money for the job. And that was enough incentive to keep him alive.

Unsheathing his katana, Jesnat charged the target. The target parried the overhead thrust and countered with an upward arc so fast that Jesnat could not evade. The blade slashed open his jacket, leaving a line of blood on Jesnat's chest. After a few exchanges of thrust and parries and various other moves, Jesnat knew he was beaten. _Not a man; an animal! _ The thought barely entered his mind when his opponent's blade sheathed itself into his chest, piercing his heart.

Faec could not stop the cry of alarm that erupted from his mouth when Jesnat fell. Iendo rushed foreword, armor-plated arms outstretched. The target evaded with a roll, ending the move with an upward thrust. Iendo fell to his knees, clutching his chest. The target turned his back to Faec as he readied the killing stroke. Faec had seen enough, aiming his gun he shot.

The bullet buried itself into the targets right shoulder, causing him to drop the sword and hunch over, clutching his wound. Faec was reloading his gun when the target turned around, eyes fixed on him. He froze. Those eyes had a feral light to them, like a… _A wolf?_ The target lunged at him. Faec raise the gun reflexively and shot three rounds into the targets chest.

Falling to one knee, the target tried to recover. He stood slowly, glaring at Faec. He never saw Iendo approaching from behind. The punch that was delivered to the back of the targets head made a resounding _crack_ and the target slumped over, limp.

"Great timing, Iendo! He's lucky if he survived that, and so are we." Faec walked over, reloading his gun once again. "One man! Damn!"

"But you shot him in the chest, boss." Iendo tried to defend himself.

"They were blanks, you idiot! They hurt like hell, but they're not leathal." He grabbed a handful of the targets dirty blonde hair, lifting his head up to look at his face. "Which is more than I can say for this one."

"Or me." Faec turned, gun ready. A black cloaked figure stood at the outside edge of a nearby pool of light. His face was pale white, like bone. "Leave now." The voice was deep and smooth.

"Who the hell are you?" Looking the figure up and down, he added, "And what?"

"Both inquiries are unimportant to you. This place is my home and the surrounding land my hunting grounds. You have trespassed. And what's more, you threatened the life of my companion." His tone was hard and cold. "Now, you have two options: Leave now, without this man, and keep your lives, or stay here and lose them. Choose wisely and quickly. My patience is drying up."

"He killed seven of my best men, there needs to be a pay up. Besides, if I leave without this man, I'm dead. The man I work for will kill me. I'll die!" Faec was now pleading with the cloaked figure. He could sense a terrible power emanating from him.

"You'll die if you stay here."

"I'll take my chances with you! I at least know the power of those I work for. Iendo!" Faec backed off, gun aimed as Iendo charged past, blood still dripping from his chest wound.

"Haha! Time to die!" Iendo lunged, fist flying at full speed and strength. The cloaked man moved so fast, Faec didn't know why Iendo stopped, let alone miss. Then he saw the glint of metal and Iendo fell backwards, his torso falling away from his waist.

The weapon that the killer held was the strangest weapon Faec had ever seen. The man – or whatever – held onto a handle, and from the handle curved a blade that ran the length and shape of the arm holding it. From the center of the blade, rose another blade, curved like a tooth or claw.

The thing swept his cloak over his armed hand and settled back into his pose he had been in. Faec noted, dimly, that its feet had not moved.

"Wrong choice." Then it all caught up with him. Faec screamed and fired his gun, all eight rounds, into the figure. As the bullets hit the cloak, wisps of the cloak floated like smoke, only to settle back in their place. The figure still stood, unchanged.

"The hell are you?!"

"It has been long since I have tasted flesh so fresh. It is always better when they are still…kicking." As the realization of what was going to happen to him dawned, Faec fell to his knees.

"Why?" It was an empty question. Faec was already lost in his own mind, hiding from the truth.

"Does there always need to be a reason?" The figure closed the gap between them and draped Faec within the folds of his cloak. "Too long."

* * *

Charcoal Weapon: Nothing like a cliffhanger-ending to really kick off the story.

Read and Review, please. Constructive criticism appreciated.

Lyrics are the next part to the song "Never Gonna Be Alone" by Nickelback, Dark Horse album. It's one of the songs that inspired this story.


End file.
